Dawn Discovered

Blake wasted no time claiming his bride. He gathered Dena up in his arms and kissed her like their lives depended on it. Dena responded to his kiss with fervor. Her lips moved against his. Her tongue invaded his mouth. She inhaled his exhale. He breathed deeply, taking her into him and giving himself to her. Ultimately, they hadn't needed the vows or the words that came with them. This kiss, the rings on their fingers, and the love flowing between the two of them were all the promise they'd ever need.









Chapter 24

Thomas wasn't surprised the next morning when he awoke to find the other side of his bed cold and empty. The scent of Jan's perfume lingered on the sheets as a reminder that she was even there at all. If nothing else, Jan was true to her word. Certain in her determination of what she did and did not want in her life. And primarily, he had to assume that was him. He might have shared a dark corner of sordid pleasure with him for a few hours. But, as she promised, that was all she was willing to share. Well, it wasn't like he'd offered her much in return. He hadn't promised her shit beyond a few hours of his full and uninhibited attention. Worked out pretty well, he guessed, for the both of them. They'd taken what they needed from each other without all the messy entanglements of love and a relationship.

He climbed out of bed and stretched, naked and wonderfully stiff from last night's exertions. He wasn't proud of the new shallowness of his nature. He could rationalize his actions all that he wanted to. As if confining his nocturnal activities to just one woman made any difference. So what, he wasn't balling and knocking up half the town. He was having sex, consensual sex, with a woman that he didn't love. Hell, with a woman that he didn't even like, all that much. That fact made him despicable to most of the women he knew and a hero to most of his guy friends. What it made him... he tried not to think of what it made him in his own mind. He stared at his naked reflection in the mirror over his dresser. The trail of scratches from her nails down his chest was a nice memento of last night. "You are a complete and utter whore dog."

Thomas frowned as he lifted the pillow to his nose and caught the floral scent of her perfume. Awesome was a shallow word to define what they'd been doing last night in his bed. He yanked the sheets off the bed and tossed them into a loose ball on the floor. He was using her. And for that matter, she was using him too. Fair was fair. And if the two of them were anything, they were fair. The next time, if there was one, he was going to her place. He was sick of waking up to an empty bed and sex stained sheets. With all things being so very fair and equal. She could get stuck with her share of the laundry.

He didn't know why he was so pissed about a load of laundry. It wasn't like washing and drying the bedding was some major undertaking. Thomas scooped the empty condom wrappers off the nightstand and balled them into a wad in his fist. He'd gotten exactly what he wanted last night. And he'd had the time of his life getting it. And what was so wrong about that?

He pulled on a pair of jogging shorts and gathered up the laundry. Inhaling the scent of Jan's perfume and the musky, lingering essence of sex on the bundle, he headed for the washing machine. His mama had raised him better than this. But, as he added a capful of detergent to the wash, what she didn't know wouldn't earn him the chewing out of his life. He closed the lid on the washer with a determined thump and got down to business cleaning up the rest of the mess, dropping the condom wrappers in the trash on his way through the kitchen.

He wasn't using Jan. She knew the terms and she'd agreed to them. He made the bed. Snapping the sheets tight across the mattress. Everything between them was fair and square. And he had no right to be pissed at her or at himself. He was a grown man with a man's needs. And Jan had been willing to fulfill them, at least for one night. He smoothed the comforter over the bed and fluffed the pillows.

The dried, shriveled, used condoms stuck to the carpet were a nice touch and a bitter reminder of his new and improved sordid lifestyle. He yanked the things out of the nap of the carpet and dropped them into the bathroom trash. Apparently, in his zeal to get to Jan's sweet spot a second time and then afterwards, lost to the haze of lust. He'd pulled off the condoms and let them land wherever they landed.

Oh, Jan got as good as she gave. He'd made sure of that. After all, wasn't that the true essence of fairness? He came. She came. And then they'd climaxed together...twice. He got hard just remembering the sound of her voice as she reached that sweet place of no return. Damn, she had the personality of a terrier with a bone and the body of a goddess. There was no way this...whatever it was between them...was ever going to turn into anything more than an occasional sex fest.

One-night stands were never as good as they sounded. Perhaps, that was why he was so pissed off and in such a fowl mood. It took a lot of courage to get naked and climb between the sheets with a virtual stranger. To expose the most vulnerable parts of yourself to someone who really didn't give a damn about the morning after. At least, the good thing about this was that he thought less and less about Claire. And the bad...he thought more and more about Jan. And he did not like where these thoughts took him one bit.

Jan yawned and rolled over in her twin-sized bed. After fleeing the scene of the crime. She'd gone straight home and into a nice hot shower to wash the sex and the scent of Thomas off her skin. Too bad, she couldn't wash her unwanted thoughts of Thomas out of her head as easily as she'd washed his scent off her skin.

It'd taken her forever to fall asleep. She kept thinking about how she'd left him in the bed alone. Yeah, it was a low thing to do. To slink off like that with her bra and panties tucked in her purse and her thighs slick with lube from the condom and the juices of the orgasms he'd given her. But, he'd made his position on things abundantly clear. And she wholeheartedly agreed with him. No doubt about that. She didn't want a relationship any more than he did. And at the core of their very beings, they didn't like each other. They weren't compatible on any other level beyond the physical. But, the physical...damn was it good.

They didn't owe each other a damn thing. No promises. No messy entanglements. Free and easy and with one hell of an out clause, just the way they both wanted it. Thomas was fucking her to get over Claire. She was fucking him to escape her past and declare her control over her own destiny. Worked out pretty well, until the morning after when, in the garish light of dawn, things weren't nearly as pretty as they had been under the velvet cover of night.

Giving up on the idea of trying to sleep in on her day off, Jan threw back the covers and forced her feet to move. Try as she might, she couldn't ignore the lingering memories of last night. And staying put in this bed under the guise of sleeping in would only cause a parade of unwanted thoughts to march straight into her head.

Thomas...damn what could she say about him? He was an excellent lover. Patient. Considerate. Giving. Attentive. Memories of the things he could do with his hands caused goose bumps to riddle her flesh. At least, in bed, he put her needs above his own. He filled her and pumped into her never demanding or quickening the pace of their joined bodies until she was ready to. He kissed possessively, and yet at the same time, so gently and sweetly. His fingertips and his tongue were works of art. His body was as relentless in its pursuit of pleasure as her own.

He was everything in the bed he wasn't out side of it. Oh, Thomas was kind, to his patients. But, to his coworkers, he could be a demanding prick, egotistical, and self-centered. He wanted things his way and expected the rest of the world to get with the program. Sometimes, though, when he thought nobody was looking. He let his other side. His softer, caring side, peek through. He cared. Too much. He thought. Too often. Everything he did was to the extreme. He loved a woman who didn't love him in the same way. He fucked a woman he could hardly tolerate outside of the bedroom. And he kept secrets he never should have been asked to keep.

Her body was sated. But, her mind raced between self-condemning accusations and heady reminders that she might be feeling something more than she was willing to admit for the man she lived to despise. Last night had been nothing more than a matter of weakness. She'd over indulged. Too many drinks had lead to the clouding of her judgment. That, and she'd just been so damn lonely.

She stood in front of the mirror brushing out the tangles in her long hair. Scowling at the deep purple bruise on her neck. A hickey? Thomas had given her a hickey? What was this? High school? Frowning, she pawed through her meager makeup collection. Nothing was going to cover that dark purple blotch on her skin. At least, he'd marked her in a less conspicuous place, in the tender spot just below her right earlobe. Jan preferred her hair up and neatly bound in a ponytail. Not happening today.

If one whisper got out about the hickey, Ginger would never let it go. She'd badger her forever until Jan caved and confessed. Jan didn't want to breathe a word to anybody about how she spent her lonely nights. It really wasn't anybody's business. But, a trivial detail like that had never stopped Ginger from prying where she wasn't wanted before. Jan left her hair down and carefully arranged the strands to cover the hickey. Hiding it behind her hair didn't help.

The bruise was as plain as day. She plucked a red bandanna out of her dresser and tied it around her neck. Dressing in blue jean cut off shorts and a sleeveless, checked gingham button down she looked like a country girl. At least her clothing explained the need for a bandana around her neck.

Thomas was probably congratulating himself for conning her into his bed for a second round. She'd screwed his brains out. Left him weak and whimpering like a puppy. And what'd he give her in return. A hickey. Nice. She should march right over to his house and give him a piece of her mind. Remind him that she was not his to mark. And that she didn't appreciate being on the receiving end of the only hickey she'd ever had in her life.

"Really, Jan?" The hickey was not visible beneath the bandana. And the country girl look was cute on her. The only thing missing were the cowboy boots and wide brimmed straw hat. "Are you looking for a reason to see him again?" She spoke to herself because, well, she didn't have anybody else to talk to.

Last night had been both of their faults. Not just hers and not just his. She enjoyed it every bit as much as he apparently did. She thought about how she'd gotten the hickey and how good his lips had felt on her skin. Blushing at the things she could only admit to herself. She ran her fingertip over the tender quarter sized spot. Even after a night of the best sex she'd ever had. She regrettably admitted that Thomas could still find ways to irritate her to the point of exhaustion.

The above garage studio apartment she rented off Ginger was small and confining. Outside, the sun shone brilliantly. The gentle breeze filtering through her windows smelled sweet, like wildflowers. She should be out there, doing something. Living the life she declared she wanted to live. Her mood was off. She wasn't happy. She wasn't sad. She wasn't pissed. And when it came to Thomas. She wasn't hopeful in the least. Despite the prettiness and promise of the day. She stayed inside and hunkered down for a long day of caving and hiding from the world.

Jan flopped down on the couch and flipped on the TV, determined to lose her self an old repeat and put Thomas Sterling and the night of sex out of her mind. What was the word he'd used? Awesome? Amazing? Both words covered last night adequately. Why, when she'd finally found someone who could make her bell ring. Did it have to be someone like him? It wasn't fair. Couldn't she have it all? Why couldn't Thomas be a mix of nice guy, sex fiend, and best friend? And what the hell did it matter to her? She wasn't in any position to want for anything.







Chapter 25

Hunter slept restlessly throughout the night. He'd kept her awake with his tossing and turning, mumbling, and kicking at the covers. Until finally, at the early hour of six o'clock in the morning, she gave up and put on a pot of coffee. His brow was slick with sweat as he moaned in the throws of a dream. His skin was tepid to her touch. His muscles tensed beneath her fingertips. She sat beside him on the bed. Hoping to calm him and ease him into the deep sleep he needed.

Hunter's eyes opened and focused on the blurry world taking shape before him. Gina's fingers were cool and comforting. Gently brushing across his forehead. "Gina," he rasped. His voice was hoarse and his muscles ached. Slowly, he inched up and rested against the pillows. Her voice sounded like it was miles away. The glass of water she thrust into his hand shook as he lifted it to his lips.

"Rough night?"

"Very." He gulped down the water. It didn't taste right to him. But, it was cold and eased the fever raging through his body. He had a gift unique to the Pack. He could sustain his wolf for long periods of time without the aid of Pack magic. What he was doing to himself of his own free will was a choice. He was exiling his wolf. The separation was agonizing.

"Should I call someone?" Gina asked nervously. Sick people were not her forte. Usually, she avoided illness like the plague. And she hadn't realized that wolves could get sick. Hunter looked like death warmed over. But, he had been there for her when she went through her bad spot and she'd be here for him.

"No. I'll be ok. Just the flu," he lied. He'd never been physically sick a day in his life. And perhaps, with this being his first awful experience with illness, his body wasn't handling it as well as a normal person should. He hadn't expected the transformation to human to hit so suddenly and with such fury. He'd shifted not more than a day ago. He really thought he'd have more time to relax and enjoy her before the pain set in.

"Would you like some breakfast?"

His stomach rolled at the mere suggestion of food. "No. I brought some herbs. There, in the baggie by the sink. Perhaps some tea?" Nana's magic herbal tea could cure anything from a hangover, to morning sickness, to the black plague. Maybe the tea would help calm his fraying nerves, ease his agony, and sooth his bucking stomach. "I'm going to take a shower," he said. His legs felt like rubber. He gathered up what composure he could and hid his weakness as best as he was able from her.

Gina watched Hunter waver as he walked to the bathroom. Something was wrong. She'd never seen him so fragile. Even when he was healing from the worst of his injuries, he wasn't this weak. She filled the kettle and put it on the stove to boil. Pondering what to do, how to help. Her instincts alarmed inside of her head. Something was very, very wrong.

Hunter stuck his head under the hot spray. The warmth of the shower made his aching body feel a little better. He squirted some soap over his chest and let the water chase the suds down his legs. He pushed the images from his dreams out of his mind. Dreams of prior hunts occupied his thoughts. Dreams of running wild and free with his pack entertained him in the theater of his mind's eye. He couldn't think of his life in those terms any longer. He'd found humanity in all its pain and limitations and he was desperate to cling to it for her sake.

Gina was worried about him. And maybe he should tell her of his decision. Maybe, she'd understand and support him through this time of trial. Maybe, she wouldn't. She saw his gift as something beautiful and majestic. Not as a curse that would eventually come between them when she succumbed to death's inevitable hand. He would keep his secret from her until it was over and no longer mattered. Fake her out and down play his pain. Hide it from her. Pretend he really had the flu.

Gina slipped the pungent smelling herbal tea into Hunter's quivering hands. "Hunter, are you sure there's nothing more I can do? I could run into town and get some medicine." Gina's brows wrinkled in concern.

Hunter sipped at the tea. The bitter brew eased down his throat. Burning a trail of relief wherever it touched. "Nah, this is good." Hunter stretched out against the pillows and patted the empty spot next to him. Sighing as she curled up beside him, he held her tight. "This is even better."

Gina waited until Hunter was fast asleep. She inched the half drained mug out of his hand and set it on the kitchen table. She covered him with a blanket. Relieved that his fever had subsided. She still worried. She didn't buy his simple explanation of the flu. She fished out the emergency cell phone that Dane had given her. Flipping through the numbers until she locked onto the one she wanted. Calling the only person she could think of that might be able to help. Tristen.

"Damn," Tristen muttered. Slapping his cell phone closed. He dropped the thing on his dresser as if it were going to burn him. His dad was really going through with it. He said what words he could to put Gina's mind at ease without spilling the secret. His dad's secrets weren't his to tell. He reassured Gina that his dad probably had the flu and would be back to his old self in a few days. Encouraged her to call back, if there were any changes.

Daniel glanced up from his video game. Tristen had his own room now. But, the two of them had shared a room together since he'd been old enough to climb out of his crib. And it was just second nature to the both of them to hang out together in their down time. They'd split the booty their shared room contained. Daniel got the laptop and his brother, the game system and flat screen TV. "Problems?"

"Nah, it's nothing." Tristen eyed his brother warily. He couldn't tell Danny what Gina had told him. Hanging out in his room like a couple of buds had built a fragile peace between them. But, the truth was. He didn't trust Daniel. Not with something as big as this.

"Oh." Daniel went back to playing his game. He was supposed to be studying Physics. And if his grandpa caught him screwing off instead, he'd have hell to pay. But, he didn't care. He was sticking close to Tristen. Indulging in a little spy business of his own. He knew, when the time came, Gina would call Tristen. And she had. Even though his shift was years away, he had enhanced senses and had heard the worry in her voice through the cell phone. He had to make his move quickly and carry out his plan. Otherwise, he'd be too late. Casually, he went up to his room and gathered up what he needed.

Claire held GT close to her breast. Gently rocking GT in the rocker that had soothed and comforted generation after generation of grumpy babies. "Married?" Claire gasped, dumbfounded and shocked by the news.

"Yes." Dena held out her finger and showed off the simple gold band. "Last night at the bluffs under a brilliant cover of stars your father and I exchanged vows," she answered dreamily.

"I knew you guys still loved each other. I just knew it! All these years I've been waiting. Plotting and scheming ways to get you two back together again. I can't believe it finally happened." She snickered, "Why do you think I joined the Glee Squad in high school? It was the only way to get the two of you in the same place at the same time."

Dena slid GT out of Claire's arms and held him close. Rubbing her cheek across the fine downy covering of hair on his sleek little head. "I think it was this little guy who finally got us talking again. At first, I thought I was just lonely and so was your dad. But, afterwards, when we kept looking for excuses to see each other, I realized it was something more. And no, it's not a mid life crisis," she added defensively.